Home » 92-Year-Old South African Walks Her Way to Possible World First

92-Year-Old South African Walks Her Way to Possible World First

A 92-year-old (super) woman from Johannesburg walked her way into a likely world record this weekend by probably becoming the first woman in her age group – in the WORLD – to complete a 20km walk race. Cecily Rootenberg, is set to apply to the World Masters Athletics organisation to have her performance recognised as […]

By SAPeople
23-10-17 08:58
in Fab South African Stuff

A 92-year-old (super) woman from Johannesburg walked her way into a likely world record this weekend by probably becoming the first woman in her age group – in the WORLD – to complete a 20km walk race. Cecily Rootenberg, is set to apply to the World Masters Athletics organisation to have her performance recognised as a global record.

Multi-award winning Rootenberg accomplished her latest feat – with her impressive leaning style of walking – at the Interprovincial Race Walking Championships in George.

She became the first woman in the 90-95 age group to complete an official 20km walking race, taking the interprovincial grandmasters’ crown in just under four hours (3:53:41), said TeamSA (who put her age at 93).

Rootenberg attributes her successful walking to the olden days in Joburg. “When we were youngsters we walked everywhere, because when I grew up, Sandton was just a lot of farms… My holidays were spent on farms, where we walked all the time, going wherever we wanted to go, as long as we walked to get there.”

Speaking to Modern Athlete last year, Rootenberg said it’s her passion for walking that keeps her young; and recalled one of her proudest moments in the ’90s being walking to the finish line of a race alongside Comrades Marathon legend Bruce Fordyce who found it rather challenging and said runners are people who’ve never learnt to walk.

Rootenberg joined Run/Walk for Life in Parkmore at the age of 68 after golf became too expensive and tennis was no longer an option.

She is often joined by her son during the walks, and says when the going gets tough he gives her a “little push”… and that she always thinks “Lord, lift up my feet and I’ll put them down.”

Rootenberg told Modern Athlete it has moved her to have so many people of all races and ages come up to her and tell her she’s an inspiration (she always jokes that the age on her tag is her speed limit!)

Rootenberg believes everyone in the country should join an athletic club… because “when you are a runner or a walker, there is no colour, everyone is buddies…”

History was also made this weekend by another pioneering race walker – resurgent KwaZulu-Natal athlete Natalie le Roux made a new national record at the ASA National 50km in George.

Natalie le Roux. Source: TeamSA

Le Roux, a former elite walker who returned to the sport three years ago after taking a seven-year break to concentrate on work and family, capped her comeback with an impressive solo victory in the women’s 50km event, and secured the SA title.

Sources: teamsa.co.za and modernathlete.co.za